Broken Walls, Broken Hearts
by dragon of spirits
Summary: There are reasons Danny decided to become a hero and help people. One of those reasons was because he had been there that fateful day seven years ago. He remembered, he knew… Dedicated to September 11. Oneshot


**A/N**: I couldn't _not_ write this. It's a short oneshot, but I just... kind of _needed_ to write it...

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Danny Phantom.

**Summery:** There are reasons Danny decided to become a hero and help people. One of those reasons was because he had been there that fateful say seven years ago. He remembered, he knew… dedicated in remembrance to September 11.

* * *

**Broken Walls, Broken Hearts**

Danny looked down at the ash-covered ground of Ground Zero, thoughts racing though his head. It was that day again. The day Danny had first seen evil, pain, hate, and death. He had been young back then, but it was something so hard to forget. Not that Danny would ever forget that day. He didn't want to forget it.

He remembered it very clearly. His family had been visit New York on vacation. His parents were attending a ghost convention and Danny and Jazz were going to hang out with their favorite uncle. It seemed like that day was going to be so perfect.

But everything went wrong. Danny, Jazz, and the Uncle Tommy had planned on getting an early start in the day. They were going to go touring. Planning to visit all the hotspots of New York, they eagerly set out.

Until Jazz complained she was hungry. So Uncle Tommy made them stop at a restaurant and get some food. By the time they had ordered everything and Jazz was content, it was already an hour later then they originally thought. Danny was annoyed. His stupid sister was ruining his whole day!

Their first stop; the World Trade Centers. Uncle Tommy's wife, Aunt Susan, worked there and he had to drop something off. It was exactly 8:41 when they reached the Centers.

Danny was getting anxious. He wanted to visit the space centers and the statue of liberty. Why was he at this boring old building? He wished his uncle would hurry up.

It took a few minutes for Uncle Tommy to find whatever he wanted to give Aunt Susan. He parked a few blocks away from the Twin Towers and smiled as Danny and Jazz took his hands.

It was 8:45.

Jazz stumbled, tripping on her shoelace. It took a bit of time, but she was able to get it tied. Danny was basically jumping up and down with excitement. After this they would get to go to all the cool places!

Then it happened. It was 8:46 on the morning of September 11th. Danny was standing in front of the Twin Towers. They were huge, an even though somewhat dull, they looked majestic.

Then Danny looked up. A plane. A big plane… was flying towards them! Towards the towers! Danny watched wide-eyed as the plane continued on its suicidal path. He tugged at his uncle's sleeve, but was ignored.

Then it happened.

_CRASH_! Danny watched with fear and surprise as the plane collided with the building. Smoke plumes rose from the World Trade Center, and the noise was deafening. People started to panic. No one really knew what was really happening.

To a child's mind, it seemed like the world ended.

Uncle Tommy cried out, running towards the Towers. Danny remembered his aunt was still in there on floor eighty-two. She would never make it out in time.

Uncle Tommy was saved only for the reason that it was impossible to get close to the tower, due to the throng of people trying to get away from it. Jazz and Danny held hands tightly, afraid to lose one another in the crowd. And they stood there, watching as the World Trade Center burned.

Slowly…

Falling…

Smoke…

Rising….

Everything…

Lost…

In…

Flames…

It was horrible.

Danny could remember every detail. Ever excruciating detail. He remembered the alarm. He remembered the fear. He remembered the destruction. He remembered the deaths.

And he knew he would not be the only person to remember.

All over the US, the world, mankind would remember this day as a tragedy. A day that's name would be spoken in whispers out of respect. A day that so many had lost loved ones.

It was one of the reasons Danny had vowed become a hero when he got his powers. He could have been anything. He could have used his powers for evil, or just used them for his own uses.

But he knew that he would always use them for good and never evil. Because he had seen what evil can do. He had seen the deaths and pain it could cause.

And he would never forget.

Now, as he stood in the same place he had seven years ago, he couldn't help but feel the pain of all those people. He remembered the announcement on the news. Ultimately, about 2,749 death certificates were filed relating to the 9/11 attacks, as of May 23. Many of those deaths were of people trying to save others. Even more were of those trapped in the tower.

Of all the people who were still in the towers when they collapsed, only about 20 of these people were pulled out alive.

It was horrible and sad. There were no words to describe it. It was like nothing could ever be rebuilt, be remade, because of this tragedy.

Then a patch of green caught Danny's eyes. It was just a small patch of weeds, with a tiny daffodil sticking out, but it still brought a smile to Danny's lips.

It reminded him of what they did have.

Life.

Love.

Hope.

Yes, September 11th was a tragedy, and Danny would never ever forget what happened. But now, now Danny had the chance to help.

A chance to make sure something like this would never happen again.

That's why he was a hero.

_Dedicated to all those men, women, and children who died September 11__th__, 2001. We'll never forget what happened to you_.


End file.
